Far Hills, N.J. - Ever since he burst onto the national scene by winning the 1954 U.S. Amateur, Arnold Palmer has been the people's champion. His charisma, style of play and ability to connect to the public, made Palmer an icon, not just to those in the golf world, but to everyone in society.
Those endearing qualities made him the ideal choice for the U.S. Golf Associaiton when it looked for a national chairman of its Members Program upon its creation in 1975. And it made him the perfect individual to attach a name for the renovation of the USGA Museum at Golf House.
The USGA held a groundbreaking ceremony Nov. 17 for the Arnold Palmer Center For Golf History, a 20,000 square-foot addition to the existing building that is scheduled to open in early 2008. On hand for the festivities were Palmer, along with other dignitaries from the USGA that included current president Fred Ridley, executive director David Fay and executive committee member Jay Rains.
Each talked about the past and future of the USGA Museum, which is the oldest in the country dedicated to sports.
"It's like winning the [U.S.] Amateur, Open and the Senior Open all at once," says Palmer, describing his emotions of having his name attached to this project. "It's like I said to Fred Ridley when he asked if I would consent to this I said, 'That's it. It's like winning another Open.'
"I'm very flattered. I don't think you can put words to how important it is to me as an individual. When I was a kid, it was my family and God and the USGA. That was kind of the way I was raised."
Shortly after the speeches were made to an assembled group of invited guests, USGA volunteers and staff, Palmer, Ridley, Fay and Rains simultaneously took shovels to a clump of dirt in front of the existing museum to conclude the ceremony.
The project itself has already received approval from local, county and state officials, and has completed the design development phase. Actual construction is slated to begin in 2006.
The Arnold Palmer Center For Golf History will include a rotunda with skylight and clerestory to showcase the 13 original USGA National Championship trophies, approximately 5,000 square feet of gallery space to tell the history of the USGA championships and champions from 1895 to the present, a 1,000-square-foot research room, 5,000 square feet of collection storage rooms and offices for curatorial staff.
"Mindful of Arnold Palmer's popularity throughout the world and to all of golf's greatest qualities, we are here today to honor him," Ridley says. "The Palmer Center will be the world's premier repository for significant historical artifacts, photographs, film and videos that will be used to create a dynamic atmosphere to celebrate the game's greatest champions and greatest moments in USGA history. The Center will also be a leading research facility for a study of the game's history. We also anticipate that this facility will be a key communications tool in its mission to promote and conserve the best interests of the game."
David Shefter is a staff writer for the USGA. E-mail him with questions and comments at dshefter@usga.org.
